Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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We are examining the options and engaging with the stakeholders. An agreement was reached in February 2013. We have a decision to make on Ireland's position with regard to a local or out-of-state court, and that decision will be made in due course. The process of engaging with stakeholders is arguably still ongoing.

On CERN, I make the point that the European Space Agency, ESA, is not often heard about in the public domain. If one was to measure the column inches on the ESA versus CERN, CERN would garner many more inches. However, if one considers our membership of ESA, an area for which I have particular policy responsibility, we have carried out an analysis of our investment of €17 million and found it has directly impacted on turnover to the tune of some €250 million for Irish and FDI-related companies because it has allowed those companies to win contracts. For example, Radisens Diagnostics is a company that, through its engagement with the ESA, has won significant funding nationally and is now winning serious funding rounds internationally. The position is similar with Treemetrics, a company that has also won grant aid from the ESA and a company this committee might be more familiar with in terms of the impact it is creating in regard to global forestry solutions.

It has been said we can get an associate membership of CERN for €1 million. The reason we are carrying out the review is that we need to kick the tyres on that statement. We are carrying out a review of our membership of all international organisations. However, it is only fair, if we are carrying out a review of our membership, to do so in the best interests of the taxpayer, which has to be the bottom line in all of this. The question in my mind, given there is now a campaign, which we all welcome, is whether it is the case that individual researchers are barred from accessing CERN as a facility by virtue of the fact that Ireland has not paid its €1 million associate membership. I have not seen any evidence to suggest they are barred. As I understand it, although I stand to be corrected, individual academic institutions can pay a particular fee, whatever that is, or they might have an arrangement with an external university which will allow Irish researchers access to the facility of CERN.

We are being very honest about our approach on this and we have an open mind on it. Before making the decision to invest €17 million in the ESA, we undertook an economic analysis. It is only fair that we undertake an economic analysis and, potentially, a societal analysis of the impact of our membership of CERN. To be fair, while I do not want to be facetious, I have heard it said that CERN has been great for humanity and it has brought us the Internet. However, the Internet was coming anyway, and it is not certain whether we would have had an influence on that, or perhaps there were Irish researchers already there who had an influence. If we spend €1 million on associate membership or €12 million on full membership, will it have a quantitative impact on our interaction with CERN? That is the question that has to be asked.

I believe we should have the review. I take absolute cognisance of the bona fides of those who are campaigning on this issue. They are excellent researchers who are part of international consortia which have access to CERN. However, the question has to be asked what is the benefit in real terms and what kind of contracts will Ireland get from it. I would like to look at countries of a comparable size to Ireland and see what benefits they have derived from their membership of CERN in terms of various contracts.